- First off, Michelle pretty much went Emeril Lagasse on the Thanksgiving dinner preparation. I mean, she pretty much made the pilgrims and Indians look like a bunch of amateurs. Not only did she whip up some brilliant green bean casserole, sweet potatoes, stuffing, and turkey…she squeezed in a 6-mile bike ride to Tesco to secure the missing ingredients. Ridiculous! Not to be outdone, I sliced up some zucchini and did my thing as well. You can consult the picture for proof…
- Lest you get the idea that we were saving all our energy this week for Thanksgiving dinner…allow me to briefly recap some of our other activities in what turned out to be an insane week…
- Wednesday night: Big time event…a conversation with Simon (I think) Tisdall, an Editor at The Guardian and a long-time foreign affairs correspondent, at Downing College. Luckily for my party (Michelle and my development studies friend) I was able to lead us, via an inspired short cut, directly to the theatre at Downing. They would’ve been lost without me. Anyway, Mr. Tisdall was just a really cool person to listen to. You could just sense that he has so many stories to tell…all the places he’s been, the things he’s seen…his life is really unique. His presentation delivery was brilliant, I thought. He was very brief, but dropped in little vignettes about his experiences that left you wanting more. From sitting in Darfur, a war ravaged region in Sudan, talking to his daughter on an incomprehensibly perfect cell phone connection to traveling with Ahmadenijad, the now infamous President of Iran, around his country and seeing both men and women in a huge stadium, standing on opposite sides of a fence with the women dressed head to toe in black, greeting him as a rock star. What was most striking about Mr. Tisdall, however, was his overwhelming gravitas. The way he stooped over the lectern and talked in an ever so somber and almost detached way. It was almost as if he had the weight of the entire world on his shoulders. As if everything he has seen has taken an indescribable toll. It was incredibly powerful…and while I envied his experiences…I felt for him as well. It can’t be easy to view firsthand so many of the terrible things that people can do to each other.
Almost forgot to mention the main highlight of the event…I asked a question! I can honestly say this was probably the first time in my life I’ve ever been so bold. I think I asked something (likely very insightful…or not) about Iran…but I’m not entirely sure as it’s all kind of a blur now.
- After the aforementioned event, Michelle and I hit up the much talked-about Cambridge pub known as The Eagle. Sadly, Watson and Crick were not there…nor was their DNA model. Otherwise, everything was excellent. Food was awesome and cider was cold and intoxicating. All and all…an A plus evening.
- Monday night was all about the sushi. Michelle and I and two of my development studies friends managed to master the conveyor belt of raw foods. Fortunately, Kobayashi was nowhere to be seen…so everything went smoothly.
- We’ve had some pretty frosty mornings the last few days and we actually had a very light dusting of snow this morning. Nice!
- I was walking along the river the other day and a duck nearly flew into me. It was a very awkward experience for both of us…we agreed to pretend like it didn’t happen.
- Tonight…Bond Night at Churchill College! This one will be epic, no doubt. I’ve chosen to go as the Sean Connery version of Bond. I have my black tie ready. I get mistaken for a young Connery quite often anyway…so this night might be just a bit awkward for me. I can take it though…
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